Operation Branchform

Operation Branchform is a Police Scotland investigation into possible fundraising fraud in the Scottish National Party (SNP) that was launched in 2021 and is ongoing as of February 2025[update].

[8] Labour Party Member of the Scottish Parliament James Kelly asked the Electoral Commission to investigate whether the SNP had spent the money on campaigning in the general election.

[11] In January 2020, the pro-independence blogger Stuart Campbell, through his website Wings Over Scotland, claimed that the SNP's published accounts for 2018 did not contain enough money to cover the ring-fenced sums that were said to have been raised.

On 20 March 2021, however, three members of the SNP's Finance and Audit Committee (Cllr Frank Ross, Cynthia Guthrie and Allison Graham) resigned over a lack of access to party accounts.

[14] As a result, long-time Scottish independence campaigner Sean Clerkin made a complaint to Police Scotland about the allegedly missing funds in March 2021.

These included allegations that ring-fenced referendum funds were instead spent on legal costs for Peter Murrell during the Alex Salmond sexual harassment scandal, and for SNP MEP Alyn Smith during a defamation case against the Brexit Party.

The meeting - which was recorded and released publicly in April 2023 - was to discuss a report commissioned by depute leader Keith Brown on financial transparency, following the resignation of Douglas Chapman.

[20] In September 2021, The Times reported that Police Scotland had received a search warrant from the Crown Office to obtain documents from the SNP's auditors, the accounting firm Johnston Carmichael.

Foote also denounced the search of Sturgeon and Murrell's home: "The use of forensic tents and a whole platoon of plod at the house turned a routine process into a grotesque circus, compounded by the storming of SNP HQ.

[4] That month, the outgoing Chief Constable, Sir Iain Livingstone, re-iterated his defence of the investigation, telling the BBC's Today programme that the time taken was proportionate to the allegations of fraud and embezzlement because of the need to obtain information from banks and other financial institutions.

[68] Speaking to the Daily Record, SNP leader and First Minister Humza Yousaf rejected Foote's past comments on the investigation and re-iterated that the party would cooperate fully with the police.

[70] In November 2023, two former sheriffs, Kevin Drummond KC and Douglas Cusine, of the legal group Quis, warned that the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service raised questions over the "protracted period of time" taken by the investigation.

They further added that; "In the absence of any explanation by Police Scotland or the Crown Office, the delay in such a high profile case is capable of stimulating perceptions of cover-up.

[71] By December 2023, Police Scotland was reported to be investigating over 1,000 alleged instances of fraud as part of Operation Branchform, including the provenance of a Jaguar I-Pace worth up to £95,000 that had been bought by Peter Murrell in 2019.

[5] By the end of February 2024, it was reported that Police Scotland had requested to re-interview SNP staff as part of the investigation, including those who were not in place when the inquiry began.

[76] A Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service spokesman confirmed that it received a report in relation to Peter Murrell and that an investigation into two other individuals "a man aged 72 and a 53-year-old woman" were still ongoing.

[79][80] On 14 August, in an interview with Sky News, Chief Constable of Police Scotland Jo Farrell confirmed that Operation Branchform was still ongoing and that Nicola Sturgeon and Colin Beattie remain under investigation.

The accounts showed that the party still owed Peter Murrell £60,000 for a loan of £107,620 made three years previously to support cash flow after the 2021 Scottish Parliament election.

However, this was largely accomplished from two levies on party branches, which raised £670,000 to support campaigning in the 2023 Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election and the 2024 UK general election.

An Advice and Guidance Report was sent to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, detailing the progress of the investigation so far and asking for formal direction on how to proceed.

Criminal defence lawyer Thomas Leonard Ross KC also expressed concern at delays in the investigation: "Once somebody is charged then they have the right to a trial within a reasonable time.

"[86] On 6 October, the Sunday Mail reported that prosecutors were investigating claims that over £100,000, supposedly spent on refurbishments to SNP party headquarters, was paid to a non-existent company.

A major high street bank was reported to have flagged transactions connected with SNP accounts in 2023, with a source saying; "One of the biggest items being looked at is a six figure sum which on paper appears to have been spent creating a media suite at the Edinburgh offices.

"[88] On 4 December, long-time Scottish nationalist campaigner Isobel Lindsay also wrote to The Herald, accusing the Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain of failing to oversee "fair and competent operation of the Crown Office" in bringing the SNP finances investigation to a conclusion.

Lindsay wrote; "Police Scotland have made it clear that they completed their job a considerable time ago so the delay in making any decision rests with the Crown Office.

Responding to Sturgeon's comments, a Crown Office spokesman said that the service would review submissions from the police and would make a decision on "next steps", and insisted that; "All Scotland's prosecutors operate independently of political influence."

Roddy Dunlop KC, Dean of the Faculty of Advocates and a former legal advisor to the Scottish Government, confirmed Ross' interpretation of the law but added; "What is a 'reasonable time' is fact-sensitive, and turns on the complexity of the matters in question.

The Crown Office said that before any action was taken, it would undertake a full evaluation that "will involve a thorough examination of the numerous witness statements and extensive evidence collected by police", and further maintained that its prosecutors operate independently and "are not influenced by political events.

When asked for clarity on whether there is a hold up, Lord Carloway said: "Well it looks as if there is, yes"[94] In response, a spokeswoman for Police Scotland said that the force had presented its findings to the Crown Office in the August of 2024, and were waiting for its decision.

[95] In February 2025, Nicola Sturgeon and Colin Beattie both passed internal party vetting to stand as SNP candidates in the 2026 Scottish Parliament election, despite still being under police investigation.